


Tied to the System

by somanyopentabs



Category: Psycho-Pass
Genre: F/M, Fluff and Angst, Whump
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-11-03
Updated: 2014-11-03
Packaged: 2018-02-23 23:57:07
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,279
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/2560499
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/somanyopentabs/pseuds/somanyopentabs
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Ginoza is captured, tied up, bound, gagged--</p><p>(Blatant exercise in Ginoza whump.  Yeah, sorry not sorry.)</p>
            </blockquote>





	Tied to the System

There was no doubt in Ginoza’s mind that he was as good as dead, and it was only a matter of time. Who was going to come and risk their life to save an enforcer? Well, Akane might, but she was out of town, and Ginoza was tied up somewhere, gagged, blindfolded and hopeless.

Maybe his capturers would get flagged by a cymatic scan. Maybe Shion could track his whereabouts with his Dominator. Wherever that was.

He was lying down, bound, in someone’s basement probably. What he could tell about his current situation was extremely limited. His cheek was resting against a cold, hard floor. Once in a while he heard voices muffled in the distance. Periodically he would struggle against his bindings, hoping to loosen them enough to free himself.

It was hard to breathe in his position, his mouth full of cotton. He took short, shallow breaths of stagnant air through his nose and tried to stay calm. If he couldn’t stay calm, then even if someone did find him, he would most likely be too far gone to not be judged harshly with the Dominators.

How long had he been here, exactly? It had all happened so fast. He had been assisting Division 2 with responding to a call when he’d been ambushed, relieved of his Dominator, and dragged kicking and screaming into a van. Why kidnap him in the first place? Why not just kill him? He was a lowly enforcer—he couldn’t be used as bait, or a bargaining chip. 

Was it revenge? He tried to think of who would have that motive. Family or friends of latent criminals he had put behind bars? He could think of no specifics.

He began to shiver, the cold seeping through to his skin. Was he just going to die here, alone, from the cold?

No, now he was being overdramatic. It wasn’t that cold. He could survive like this for a while. At least until his captors wanted him dead. Or tortured.

Oh, god. Were they going to torture him? Was that it? Did they want information?

Well, they weren’t going to get it. He wouldn’t give out any information. Not that he was privy to any higher up information anymore. In fact, anything he knew would be pretty much public record. Well, now he felt even worse. He didn’t even have any information that anyone wanted. So, they could torture him, and he could give them gardening tips. Perfect.

He tried wriggling free again, to no avail. His heart was pounding in his chest, which was cold against the floor. His skin had goose bumps. He tried to slow his breathing again, stay calm, stay in control of himself.

It was the only thing he could do as the shivering worsened. He ransacked his memory once more, trying to figure out who his kidnappers were. He tried to focus on details, but everything he could remember was blurry, like an undeveloped photo. He had never had the aptitude for this type of thing. Kougami wouldn’t be in this situation. He would have already escaped and be on his way back to the Bureau for a cup of coffee.

No, he told himself. Stop comparing yourself. There was no point to it anyway.

There were voices then, far away voices. There was…arguing, maybe? 

This was it. They were coming for him. Muffled by the gag, Ginoza realized he could have no last words. He tried to think some last thoughts instead. He thought of his father, and how he hoped he could be buried beside him. It was in his will, and it wasn’t such an outlandish thing for an enforcer to request, so perhaps they would honor it. Akane would see to it, probably. The thought of Akane made him even sadder for some reason. At least she was out of town, so she couldn’t blame herself for his death.

Okay, time to be brave, for once. The voices were getting louder, and it was time to accept his fate.

He sensed that the lighting had changed in the room, even with the blindfold.

“Ginoza?” said a familiar voice. Was his mind playing tricks on him?

Akane pushed the cloth from his eyes, and he blinked at her. The gag was the next to go, and he gratefully cleared his throat while someone released the ropes around his arms and legs.

“Can you stand up?” Akane asked.

His throat was still dry, so he nodded, and she and Hinakawa helped him to his feet. He made a valiant attempt at not collapsing immediately.

“Please,” Ginoza said. “The Dominator…if you have to use it, please get it over quickly.”

“What?” Akane sounded worried. 

Maybe his crime coefficient had risen too high. Maybe this was really the end. He felt a sharp pain in his right arm.

Ginoza closed his eyes and lost consciousness.

~

“I’m glad to see you’re awake,” Akane said as Ginoza opened his eyes and got used to the lighting in the hospital room. “We had to give you a sedative. You were going into shock.”

Ginoza’s mouth felt dry. He hated having to ask the question, but he needed to know.

“What’s my crime coefficient?”

Akane frowned and didn’t answer. She came over to the side of his bed and sat down. When she reached for his hand, he pulled away.

“Just tell me, Inspector. I’d rather know than live in suspense.”

“Ginoza, stop. Think about what you’re saying.”

“What do you mean?”

“After everything, you still care so much about your pass getting clouded?”

But that wasn’t it, not really. What if his number got so high that they decided he was no longer fit to be an Enforcer? What if he had to go live in isolation? Living without seeing another person, without seeing Akane…it was nearly unthinkable. He’d gotten used to her presence, to the sound of her voice. Nothing could ever happen between them, but even bittersweet proximity was enough on days when his mind was full of regrets.

“I let myself get captured,” he said miserably.

“I’m so sorry we couldn’t prevent it, Ginoza. We’ve arrested the parties who were responsible. I’ll let you see a full write-up of the report.”

There was a lump in Ginoza’s throat, and he felt like if he swallowed, he would be fighting back tears.

“Akane, would you…would you give me a cup of water?”

“Oh! Of course.”

There was a clear pitcher filled with water on a table. She poured some into a paper cup and came to sit beside him again. Before he could intercept her hand, she had lifted the cup to his lips.

“Go ahead,” she prompted.

“I’m not incapable,” Ginoza said with a scowl.

“No, only stubborn.”

Ginoza didn’t refute it, but took the cup from her hand and sipped.

“Won't you let me do anything for you?” Akane asked.

Ginoza shook his head. He didn’t need to be taken care of.

“If anything, you should be careful of spending so much time here,” he answered, though the thought of her leaving didn’t make him happy.

“If you say you’re worried about my pass getting clouded, I’ll douse you with water. Your crime coefficient isn’t contagious like that.”

Akane was sitting close enough that he could feel her body heat. It was distracting.

“Thank you,” he said, finally. “For coming to get me. I didn’t think that I’d be leaving that place alive.”

That made Akane smile, at last. “I was so relieved when we found you.”

She reached out for his hand again, and this time he let her hold on tightly.


End file.
